Kayla Vanderbeek reconfigures Westbrook trail allowing access for all, By Ginny Raue West Milford The forecast for three straight days of rain earlier this week was making Kayla Vanderbeek nervous. This was the week to complete her community service project for her Girl Scout Gold Award. It was a big week for Vanderbeek - she celebrated her 18th birthday on Wednesday and is leaving for college on Saturday. That’s packing a lot into just seven days, but a Girl Scout can take the heat, and then some. The Girl Scout journey When founder Juliette Gordon Low gathered 18 girls together in Savannah GA in 1912 it is doubtful that she could have imagined the future of the Girl Scouts of the USA. She couldn’t have envisioned Girl Scout Gold Award recipients addressing members of Congress about current issues. Surely today’s scouting numbers would have left her reeling; 3.4 million current girls and adult members, more than 50 million Girl Scout alumnae. Ninety-eight years in the making and Low’s commitment to helping girls become the best that they can be is still the driving force behind the Girl Scouts. Dedication to community service was one of the founding ideals, one that caps off a Scout’s career when she strives for the Girl Scout Gold Award, an honor bestowed on just 5.4 percent of eligible scouts last year. Vanderbeek, a life-long resident of West Milford and the daughter of Todd and Angela Vanderbeek, attended Upper Greenwood Lake and Macopin schools and graduated from West Milford High School in 2010. This fall she will be attending the University of Delaware, majoring in elementary education, specializing in special education. Vanderbeek believes that scouting has provided a solid stepping stone into the future. “It has made me a stronger person, more of a leader,” she said. She has been a Scout since kindergarten. Her current troop, #125, consists of just five members, five girls who have become close and supportive friends. “Being a Girl Scout has meant the world to me. I’ve met so many fun people, done so many fun things, there are so many great memories,” Vanderbeek said. A personal project There are years of work and awards to be earned before a girl can attempt her service project for the Gold Award. Preparation is key, dedication to the ultimate goal is a necessity, and then the scout must come up with a project that will have a positive impact on her community. In Vanderbeek’s case there was also a personal aspect that inspired her choice. Vanderbeek’s project was the improvement of a well-used trail that begins at Westbrook School and leads to the high school baseball and hockey fields. “The existing trail was grown over, it looked like the woods. It had deep ruts and it wasn’t safe,” she said. Vanderbeek’s sister is on the field hockey team and her grandfather, who is disabled and in a wheel chair, could not make it down the trail to see his granddaughter’s games. Soon he, and others in similar situations, will be happily attending games. Vanderbeek had to first propose her project to her scout leader and the Girl Scout council. Once approved she went to the West Milford Board of Education and the custodians at Westbrook School. Everyone gave the thumbs up. A little help from her friends The project must realize 65 hours of work: planning, fund raising and actual labor. Vanderbeek was greatly assisted on the trail by her father, Todd, girls from her troop and kids from the United Methodist Church youth group. She received generous donations from Haskell Paving, Dutch Building Company, Batinelli Landscaping, Sears Hardware, Van Orden Sand and Gravel, Materson Pools, Sierra Landscaping, Van Wingerden Farms and the Home Depot. Vanderbeek and her helpers widened the trail and cleared out debris. Placing new pipe, they redirected the water that caused the rutting and placed three boulders across the entrance to discourage ATV traffic. The boulders are painted and dedicated to the Highlanders and the field hockey and baseball teams. The trail will have decorative stone, perennial flowers and a bench when completed. A big change from the overgrown trail that existed before a Girl Scout saw the need. Thinking ahead, she hopes to locate a younger troop or a youth group that will be willing to commit to maintaining the trail in her absence. Attaining her goal Once she has been notified that her project has been approved by the Girl Scout Council she can start planning for her Gold Award ceremony. The ceremony can be held in a place of her choice - and her choice, if she gets permission, is Upper Greenwood Lake School. “Kind of back home, where I started,” she said. Down the road Vanderbeek hopes to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a Girl Scout leader. For now, due to her years of preparation, she is happily attaining a major life goal and is thankful for the support and assistance she’s had from family and friends. “I’d like to thank my dad especially for all his hard work and help throughout the project, my grandma for always supporting me and everyone who has supported me along the way,” Vanderbeek said. A Girl Scout’s vision for the betterment of her home town has neared completion. “When you get an idea that will do good, follow it up, and don’t fear that because it is only you, it cannot succeed.” - Juliette Gordon Low